Tupelo Honey Cafe

As an early pioneer in the farm-to-fork movement, chef Brian Sonoskus has been creating sassy, made-from-scratch dishes at the Tupelo Honey Cafe in downtown Asheville since it first opened in 2000. The cafe salutes the love of Southern traditions at the table, but with creative twists to traditional food favorites. At Tupelo, grits become Goat Cheese Grits, fried chicken becomes Nutty Fried Chicken with Mashed Sweet Potatoes, and poached eggs become Eggs with Homemade Crab Cakes and Lemon Hollandaise Sauce. Its cookbook collection of more than 125 innovative recipes captures the independent spirit of Asheville and is illustrated with color photographs of restaurant food, locals, farmers markets and farms, in addition to black-and-white archival photographs showing Asheville history. Co-written by Sonoskus and Elizabeth Sims, chapters include "The Art of the Perfect Sandwich and Salad," "Beyond the Smokehouse" and "Blue Ridge Parkway Brunches." The cookbook also suggests food pairings for wine and beer. Andrews McMeel Publishing in Riverside, N.J. Hardcover, 222 pages, $29.99.